


The door to dreams

by VNVdarkangel



Category: Love Live! School Idol Project, Love Live! Sunshine!!
Genre: F/F, HthaN-worldline, Music, Slice of Life
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-25
Updated: 2019-12-25
Packaged: 2021-02-26 02:13:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,298
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21961903
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/VNVdarkangel/pseuds/VNVdarkangel
Summary: A visit to the mall
Relationships: Nishikino Maki/Yazawa Nico, Sakurauchi Riko/Tsushima Yoshiko
Comments: 12
Kudos: 55





	The door to dreams

**Author's Note:**

> Time-frame: Maki is a surgeon at Nischikino General Hospital and Nico is working as an idol producer at her own company. They are living together in Tokyo as a happily married couple and have a daughter named Akane. Riko is an established classical pianist a few years after finishing college. She lives with Yochik-... Yohanne in Tokyo. Riko also has a part-time contract with Nico's idol agency. 
> 
> It is a few months after Akane's birth.

Familiar chords floated through the mall interlaced with notes where song should be heard. A song, a decade at least, old by now, but still remembered like the day she put it to paper. A door to dreams of the past that she had lived.

Now that song filled the nursery every other night as little Akane loved to hear her mothers sing it. As she heard the song played, Akane started to make happy sounds, recognizing the tune. Maki quickly adjust her arms to account for the increased movement from her daughter.

“You hear it too, dear? Shall we go look?”, Maki said and saw Akane’s face light up in happiness. Maki knew exactly where the sound was coming from, it was after all her piano that gave the notes flight. She quickly texted Nico that she was going to the piano with Akane and walked in a steady pace towards its location.

* * *

She had been surprised when she had seen a piano in the middle of the mall, curiosity taking over, she’d examined it and read the plaque on it. About half a year ago she had met the person that had placed the piano here and payed for its’ upkeep. She wondered if she would ever meet the person it was placed here for and the words _Music is for everyone_ were something she wholeheartedly agreed on.

Striking a few keys, she heard that pitch and tone were perfect, tuned by a master of the craft, the stool looked inviting and pondered what to play. Given the names and what had set her on her path, there was only one choice.

She started to play.

The notes came easy, even if she hadn’t played that song for very long, it was important to her. It marked the start of a life that, though hardships and many happy times had brought her here, or rather back here. To a piano, to a simple song, to music. And to share it with the world.

As she played a small crowd gathered, she noticed in particular a redhead, carrying a small child that appeared in the crowd then darted out of view. As she laid down the last chords she heard a voice behind her.

“Excuse me.”

Riko turned, looking into adult violet eyes and the small red ones of a baby.

“Could I ask you to play that song again?”, the adult asked, “It’s one of my daughter’s favourites. I can sing the lyrics if you don’t mind a duet?”

Riko though t for a moment, turning down a mother was never good, and she did have a reputation to maintain, but more than that, she _felt_ as if the stranger could really sing… and sing well. Some twang of recognition was there, but Riko was unable to place it. She gave her answer:

“I’d love to. This song is special to me too.”

“You hear Akane, this nice lady is going to play and mama will sing. Just like at home.”

The child beamed.

“Ready?”, Riko asked, “three… four”

“ _Yume no tobira…_ ”, the stranger began to sing.

After a few phrases, Riko had to admire the range and precision of her duet partner. Even though the song was old, and she played a more slow and mellow version, the stranger didn’t miss a beat, pitch a word wrong or fumble on a lyric. The stranger really knew this song and her voice was that of a trained singer. Riko could tell she’d both given and received coaching.

The crowd had grown even larger now and hummed along and came with the occasional cry at the appropriate times. When Riko looked into the crowd, she saw happy faces, all the reward she needed. Her duet partner seems oblivious to the crowd, focusing on her bouncing daughter, who, surprisingly, didn’t make a sound, just happily moved to the sound.

The song continued.

* * *

A few meters off the side of the stage, a tall dark-haired woman eyed the show and snapped pictures with her phone. Yoshiko was elated to see her darling Riko playing out in the open, not just on stage or at home, but here, in the middle of the mall. She took a few good pictures of Riko and the red-headed stranger and posted them to the Aquors LINE group chat. She tried to get a little closer only to bump into a smaller woman with pigtails, doing what she’d been doing, taking pictures of the show.

“I’m sorry, I was just so focused.”, she apologized, bowing slightly.

“Don’t worry about it, so was I, should have seen you.”, the smaller woman said.

Yoshiko couldn’t help to boast a little, “That’s my girlfriend on the piano.”, she pointed at the pianist.

“Ahh, I see. Well, that”, she pointed at the singer, “is my wife and my daughter.”

The looked at each other and started to giggle.

“It is an amazing world indeed where such talent pools on such simple a stage.”, Yoshiko stated theatrically.

The smaller woman didn’t miss a beat: “It is indeed a stage for the brave of mankind to play upon.”

They smiled at each other as the final chorus began to play.

“Could I have a picture with you?”, the smaller woman asked.

“Huh? Sure.. but why?”

“So that you take one too and show it to your girlfriend. We know each other.”

_That’s a little odd, someone Riri knows?_

“Ok, here goes.”

They posed and took the pictures just as the last notes faded and the crowd applauded.

A few seconds after the smaller woman had gone, Yoshiko’s phone started to vibrate extensively.

* * *

The last notes faded, the crowd cheered and applauded. Maki and the girl on the piano bowed, Maki keeping Akane level.

“Thank you, she really enjoyed that.”, Maki said.

“That’s quite all right, it was an honour to perform with you. Maybe when we meet each other here again sometime?”, the pianist asked.

“Maybe, I come here to play every now and then. Need to keep the old girl, “, Maki patted the piano, “happy. Let her know that we’re still here to care for her.”

Maki searched the crowd and spotted Nico.

“I’ve got to go. Thank you again for letting me join.”, and she left, heading towards Nico, Akane bubbling happily.

The pianist headed in the other direction towards a tall woman in a mask.

* * *

Maki and Akane came up to Nico.

“Sorry Nico-chan, I got caught up I singing, you know how much she loves that song.”

“You were magnificent Maki-chan.”

“Did you find it?”

Nico presented the item.

“But Nico-chan.. it’s so.. pink.”

“She’ll love it. Akane? Tell your mothers you like it?”, Nico held up a super pink one-piece shaped like a bear. Akane laughed and tried to grab it.

“See?” said Nico triumphantly.

“Fine, but only if…”, she finished the sentence by kissing Nico.

* * *

It took Riko just a few moments to reach Yoshiko, who was transfixed on her phone, apparently trying to answer messages faster than they came in.

She sighed, pressed the screen a few times and showed Riko a picture:

“She said you know her. Who is it?”

Riko looked in disbelief at the picture of Yoshiko and Yazawa Nico posing next to each other.

“That’s… Yazawa Nico… head of Egao.. the idol agency I went to some months ago.”

Yoshiko looked at the screen, realization hitting her.

“So that’s why Ruby is bombing the chat. I sent a picture of the performance. This Yazawa said that the one singing was her wife… that would mean….”

Riko was stunned.

She’d just done a duet with Nishikino Maki, _THE_ Nishikino Maki of µ’s.

The composer of _Yume no tobira_. The composer of the song the opened the door to her dream.

**Author's Note:**

> This fic connects to:  
> \- How to Handle a Nico by Ryqoshay  
> \- Happy Life by Ryqoshay  
> \- Next Steps by me  
> \- Part-time idol composer by me
> 
> Just something quick I had to write, the idea was just there and didn't leave me alone. Happy Holidays.


End file.
